


prompt #19: i've missed this

by zukoskataraa



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: College AU, F/M, FLUFF!!, LDR, Long Distance Relationship, Minor fighting, and misunderstandings, bc i cant write canon, hope you guys like it as well lol, i highkey like this fic, katara surprises zuko, the one where zuko misses katara
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-03
Updated: 2020-10-03
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:54:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,307
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26791708
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zukoskataraa/pseuds/zukoskataraa
Summary: warnings: gets kinda spicy at the end. just a little. like, very little.
Relationships: Katara & Zuko (Avatar), Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 46
Collections: 50 Dialogue Prompts





	prompt #19: i've missed this

**Author's Note:**

> warnings: gets kinda spicy at the end. just a little. like, very little.

“Will you be home for Christmas break?” Zuko asks his girlfriend, Katara - who he was currently facetiming, as he lays down on his bed and places his laptop on his stomach.

“I’m not sure yet.” Katara replies, not bothering to look up at Zuko as she was busy writing down notes. 

“Oh.” Zuko says, disappointment evident in his voice. Katara looks at Zuko, for the second time during their ongoing 38-minute facetime call, and gives him a sincere look.

“Hey, I don’t wanna say yes when I’m not sure yet, because you’ll get your hopes up. And then you’d be disappointed if I can’t actually be there. Finals are next week and I still have some projects to work on over the break. Sorry, Zuko.” Katara says, and Zuko shakes his head, running his fingers through his hair.

“No, no. Don’t worry about it. I understand, Kat. I just… I miss you. So bad.” Zuko says, and Katara giggles.

“Aw, well aren’t you cute? I miss you too. A lot.” Katara says and Zuko smiles.

“I miss you more. Anyway, I don’t wanna take up too much of your time. I know you’re still busy, and I shouldn’t have called.” Zuko says.

“Hey, no. Don’t worry about it, baby.” Katara says, and Zuko’s cheeks turn a shade of light pink at the pet name. “You don’t have to apologize for anything. I’m always happy to talk to you.”

“Thanks, Kat. I gotta go, I have to go out and buy some food. Study hard, but don’t forget to rest, okay? Talk to you later, future doctor.” Zuko smiles, winking. Katara blushes.

“Will do, Zuko. Bye.” She blows him a kiss and ends the call. Zuko sighs, thinking about Katara. They had been in a relationship since they were freshmen in college, and fast forwards five years later, where Zuko was in his fifth year of architecture - he failed two subjects last year - and Katara had graduated with nursing as her pre-med, and was currently in her first year of medicine, and got into her dream medical school which was across the country.

Zuko was happy for Katara, he didn’t want to hold her back from her dreams. He knew that she always wanted to become a doctor, and he would let her pursue her dreams, even if it meant having a long distance relationship. The first few months were hard, with them having different timezones - thus not being able to talk to each other properly. But once they got used to it, they would talk whenever they could, which meant just staying on call while Katara studied and wrote notes, or when Zuko had plates to finish. It had been five months since the couple saw each other in person, and Zuko was hoping that he could see Katara during Christmas break. But that didn’t seem to be the case. Or so, Zuko thought.

-

A week had passed by since Katara told Zuko that she might not make it home for the break, but nothing had changed between the two. They still talked, but Katara could tell that Zuko was feeling down.

“So, it’s the last day of your finals tomorrow, right?” Zuko asks, writing down some important details from the article he was reading. Katara hums.

“Technically, later. Since it’s already Friday here. But yeah, I have physiology in the morning and parasitology in the afternoon.” Katara says, her voice tired.

“You should focus on studying.” Zuko says. He didn’t mean to sound cold, but that’s how it sounded like to Katara.

“Zuko, are you mad?” She asks as she stops writing down her notes. Zuko looks at her, eyes wide.

“W-What? No. I’m not. Sorry. I’ve just been swamped with a lot of research and homework. I didn’t mean to sound angry.” Zuko says. The both of them have had sleepless nights the past week, with Katara studying for finals, and Zuko writing papers. The amount of caffeine the two had consumed the past few days was, in simple terms, a lot.

“It’s okay. Sorry if I jumped to conclusions.” Katara says. “I should go.”

“Y-Yeah. Sorry again, Kat.” Zuko says. “Make sure to rest, okay? Don’t push yourself too hard.” Zuko says, his voice filled with love.

“Will do, Zuko. Love you.” She blows him a kiss and Zuko smiles.

“Love you too, Kat. Bye.” He ends the call, cursing to himself.

Katara sighs, groaning. She was tired of studying, and as much as she wanted to sleep, she still had to finish reviewing. She grabs her phone and calls Sokka, her brother and Zuko’s best friend.

“HEY SIS WHAT’S UP?” Sokka answers on the first ring, his voice a little too loud, making Katara flinch and laugh.

“Hey, Sokka.” She stifles a yawn, and Sokka grunts.

“Isn’t it like 2am there? You should get some rest kiddo.” Sokka says and Katara sighs.

“I’m only one year younger than you. And yeah, I’ll sleep after um, you know the plan, right?” Katara says, grabbing the airplane ticker inside her planner, and Sokka snorts.

“Of course! It’s gonna be the sweetest thing ever. I just don’t know why you just won’t tell him. Why does it have to be a surprise?” Sokka asks and Katara shrugs, even though she knows he can’t see her.

“I-I don’t know. I just want to see how he’d react. Like you know in movies where when the guy surprises the girl at the airport? The girl cries and runs to him and all that?”

“Katara, this isn’t a movie. But, I understand where you’re coming from. I’m actually excited to see the look on Zuko’s face. And I’m excited to see you as well, I guess.” Sokka says and Katara laughs.

“Gee, thanks Sokka. I feel the love.” Katara says and yawns.

“You need to sleep now, kiddo. Call me later when your exams are over, okay?” Sokka says.

“Yeah. Sure thing. I gotta go. Bye.” Katara hangs up, yawning. She smiles as she fiddles with the plane ticket in her hands, and places it back in her planner. She couldn’t wait for Sunday.

-

“How were your exams? You aced them, right?” Zuko asks, smiling. Katara giggles as she sets her phone on her desk and places her bag on the floor.

“They were difficult. But, I hope I passed.” Katara says and Zuko shakes his head.

“I know you passed! It’s you after all, Kat.” Zuko says and Katara smiles.

“Aw, thanks. I hope those sleepless nights paid off. Now I can rest and sleep all day. Well, aside from the paper I have to pass when the break is over. But other than that, I’m free!” Katara says and Zuko chuckles.

“You definitely deserve a break. I envy you, actually. I still have to pass this paper that’s due tomorrow, as well as 5 plates, which I’m not yet done with. Well, I finished four of them. The last one, I’m almost done with. Ah, sorry for rambling.” Zuko says, embarrassed and Katara giggles.

“No, it’s alright. Your rambling is always cute.” She says and Zuko blushes. “Oh, I have to call Sokka. Talk to you later?” She asks, and Zuko nods.

“Yes, yeah. Bye, Kat.” Zuko smiles and Katara’s heart melts.

“Bye, Zuko.” She blows him a kiss and ends the call. She calls Sokka, who answers right away.

“Hey, Kat!” A different voice answers.

“Suki!” Katara squeals.

“Yup! Sokka is in the bathroom, so I picked up instead.” Suki explains.

“I can’t wait to see you on Sunday!” Katara says and Suki laughs.

“Same here. It’s been so long! We are definitely hanging out when you’re here. I’m not letting Zuko keep you all to himself.” Suki jokes and Katara giggles.

“Hey, Suki, who are you talking to?” Sokka asks in the background.

“Katara.” She tells Sokka. “I’m handing you over to Sokka now.” Suki tells Katara.

“Hey, sis.” Sokka says, sitting down beside Suki.

“Hey. Sunday okay? 10am, you pick me up at the airport, then we go to Zuko’s place.” Katara says. That was the plan, she hadn’t thought of anything else, because complicated plans weren’t needed.

“We can’t hang out before going to Zuko’s place?” Sokka asks and Katara laughs.

“We can hang out the next day, I promise.” Katara says.

“I’m taking you up on your promise.” Sokka replies and Katara giggles.

“Yeah, sure. Anyway, I gotta go. See you on Sunday! Bye.” Katara hangs up, sighing. 

She grabs her suitcase and starts to pack her clothes and essentials. She was hoping she wouldn’t have to pack too much stuff, considering she’d only be there for two and a half weeks. When it’s 6pm, Katara is almost done packing, aside from the things she still needed to use before leaving, like her laptop and charger. She gets up and goes to the bathroom, and runs the water in the bath. A warm bath after a stressful week was what she needed. She grabs her phone and opens her playlist, the smooth sound echoing in the bathroom. She takes off her clothes and sighs as she sinks down in the tub, the water easing her muscles. She smiles, thinking of Zuko.

-

“We’re almost there. Are you ready?” Sokka asks Katara, who was smiling brightly.

“Definitely! Thanks again for doing this, Sokka.” Katara says. Suki smiles as she continues to cling onto Katara.

“Don’t mention it, sis.” Sokka says.

“Don’t leaveeeee” Suki says, hugging Katara even tighter and Katara laughs.

“We’ll see each other again tomorrow, Suki.” Katara says, hugging Suki back.

“We’re here.” Sokka says as he slowly pulls up in front of Zuko’s apartment. Katara sighs, biting her lip.

“You can let go now, Suki.” Katara says and Suki does as she’s told, and Katara gets out of the car. Sokka and Suki follow her, and Sokka gets Katara’s suitcase in the trunk. Katara looks at Sokka and Suki, shaking her hands in nervousness. “What if he doesn’t want to see me? What if he hates me for lying to him? I should just go home.” Katara says and Suki takes Katara’s hands in hers. 

“Kat, relax. Deep breaths. He’s gonna be ecstatic that you’re here, I promise.” Suki assures her best friend. Katara looks at her and nods. 

“Go on, Kat. Give him the surprise of his life.” Sokka says. Katara nods as she walks up to the door. Sokka is standing by the car and Suki is hiding at the side, her phone recording the whole thing. Katara takes a deep breath and knocks three times on the door, biting her lip. A few seconds later, the door opens to reveal Zuko, his hair disheveled, bags under his eyes. Katara looks into his eyes and smiles, and Zuko widens his eyes, taking the time to process what he was seeing.

“Katara?” He asks, and she nods, smiling. “Oh my god.” He says and in an instant, Katara is in Zuko’s arms, her legs wrapped around his waist, heads buried in each other’s necks. Zuko can’t help but get slightly emotional. They pull away a minute later, and Zuko carefully puts Katara back on the ground. Zuko’s thumb caresses her cheek, and she smiles.

“Hey, don’t cry.” Katara says, leaning up to wipe away a tear on Zuko’s cheek. Zuko chuckles, sniffling.

“Sorry. I just… I can’t believe you’re here.” He says as he engulfs Katara in another hug, burying his face into her hair. “ **I’ve missed this.** I’ve missed you.” He whispers and Katara smiles.

“I’ve missed you too, Zuko. More than you know.” She pulls away and leans up to give Zuko a quick peck on the lips. She tiptoes and whispers into his ear, “There’s more of that later, but we have to get rid of our guests first.” She winks and Zuko chuckles.

“Affirmative.” He replies and takes Katara’s hand in his. Suki comes out from hiding, smiling.

“See! I told you he’d be ecstatic.” Suki says and Katara laughs.

“Of course I’d be ecstatic. I finally got to see my girl after 5 months.” Zuko says and Katara blushes. Sokka walks up to them, Katara’s suitcase in hand, as well as her bag.

“Here you go Kat.” Sokka says. “Nice to see you, Zuko.”

“Dude, we saw each other yesterday.” Zuko laughs and Sokka chuckles.

“That we did. Anyway, me and Suki should get going. See you guys tomorrow.” Sokka says and Suki waves goodbye at the couple. Zuko grabs Katara’s suitcase and hauls it into the apartment. Katara closes the door, and Zuko sits on the couch. Katara walks up to him and sits on his lap, straddling him. Zuko raises his eyebrows, amused, and chuckles as he puts his hands on her thighs.

“You should have told me you were coming home. I would have thrown you a surprise party or something.” Zuko says and Katara giggles.

“I wanted it to be a surprise.” Katara says, wrapping her hands around Zuko’s neck. “Were you surprised?” She asks and Zuko nods. 

“Yup. How long have you known that you could come home for the break?” Zuko asks, his thumbs tracing small circles on Katara’s thighs. 

“Uh, when you first brought up the topic.” Katara says, biting her lip. Zuko looks at her, surprised. “I thought that I might accidentally say it whenever we talked because of how tired I was. Like it might slip out of something.” Katara explains and Zuko chuckles.

“Well, I’m glad to have you here, back in my arms.” Zuko says, smirking. He leans close to her, his face inches from hers. “And I know you’re tired. I am too, but we won’t be getting much rest today.” He says as he crashes his lips into hers, and Katara gasps at the sudden contact. Today would be a long day.

**Author's Note:**

> tumblr: zukoskataraa


End file.
